We call our natural environment, Mother Nature. However, it looks like nowadays children are not very loyal towards their mother. We have been all the way till moon and back and still we find it hard to avoid using or manufacturing plastic. Most of us have the knowledge that how Plastic harms the environment, affects the life of all living being, and still we continue to use plastic. Plastic is like a triple threat, if you burn it then it will produce harmful gases, if you’ll bury it then it’ll take around 500 years to get decomposed and if you’ll throw it in the water then it’ll effect the Aquatic life. We would need to understand that it is very easy to destroy the nature however it takes a long time to replenish it.

Recently I went for trekking in Mc Leodganj, Himachal Pradesh, which became an eye opener for me and also one of the reasons why I am writing this article. I was really happy to see that people in the Mountains are really trying to make a difference.

What usually we study in the books and write in the answer sheets to gets marks in our exams, people in the mountains are actually doing it selflessly. When we started our trek I came across few quotes mentioned on the board by the local people, on the trail for the trekkers. One of it said, “Teach your kids to use Dustbins, before you teach them how to use a Phone”. It has a deep meaning and it clearly shows that how much we are running behind the status symbol and our own personal needs, without thinking about the environment, which includes the flora and fauna.

We kept on moving towards the top and I was so happy to see that there was not even a single sign of a plastic waste and I really felt like I am completely in the lap of the Mother Nature.
By 12:30PM we were done with the half of the trek and I was literally able to feel the fresh air I was breathing and the way it was passing through my lungs, still even now also there was no sign of plastic. After almost every kilometre there was a Stall for Tea, Coffee, snacks etc.

They had a rule that they would only take the plastic waste of that product which was purchased from their shop and rest of the plastic waste was carried by the customer, which was not purchased from that shop. Initially I was not able to understand this rule. However, at around 03:15PM when we were very close to the top of Triund trek, I went in a stall and approached a person in it and asked him that “Can I throw all the bottles which I am carrying with me since I started my trek in your dustbin?” I asked this because I was not able to understand that rule, that why every stall was only accepting that plastic waste which was purchased from them only. He then explained me that “if everybody will start putting their waste like this randomly in any stall’s dustbin then it will become very tough for us to carry all of that waste down to the main garbage. You would need to carry some of your plastic waste by yourself.” That really opened my eyes and I carried my waste plastic bottles and wrappers till the time I reached to the main dustbin at the start of the trek, from where I started.

This trek opened my eyes in many ways. Before I went on the trek I used to think that it was enough to through the plastic waste in the dustbin, however plastic is something which should be stopped from getting manufactured.
There are many species which are getting affected in a negative way due to the plastic wastes, Birds are one of those species.

Birds
# “The number of seabirds dying as a result of plastic is currently estimated at 1 million a year. This shocking statistic becomes even more worrying when we consider just how quickly this problem has grown. Fewer than 5% of seabirds studied in 1960 were found to have plastic in their stomachs, but this number had rocketed to 80% in 1980. Based on this research, and contemporary studies, it's expected that by 2050 99% of all seabird species will be ingesting plastic. Along with entanglement, this is one of the leading causes of plastic-related deaths among birds.”[1]

Aquatic Life
# A dead whale has been found washed up in the Philippines with a stomach filled with 40kg of plastic. This is not the first whale which has died due to the plastic.[2]

# A pregnant sperm whale washed up, dead, on a sandy beach outside Porto Cervo, a resort town on Italy’s island of Sardinia last week. When scientists and veterinarians cut open her womb and stomach, they found a horrifying sight: A dead baby whale and nearly 50 pounds of plastic waste jammed into her belly. The plastic filled more than two thirds of her stomach. They could also see the remains of some of the squid she'd eaten—but the nutrients from that food likely never made it into her bloodstream, because her intestines were blocked by the morass of plastic waste.[3]

Plastic waste is not only affecting the life of different species in a very negative way, but it is also affecting the quality of ground water.

Ground Water
“Scientists have found micro plastics contaminating a groundwater source that accounts for 25% of the global drinking water supply. Micro plastics are already known to contaminate the world’s surface waters, yet scientists have only just begun to explore their presence in groundwater systems.”[4]

A Village made a difference
Even though many of us are still struggling to make a difference, there are also some who have made a big difference.
Palri village, in Gurugram has set an example by building a pond and reviving another water body under the integrated watershed management programme (IWMP), enhancing the ground level in the village by around 4 feet. Earlier, the villagers were largely dependent on water tankers and could not use groundwater for drinking because it was hard water. [5]
Not a Metro City or a City or a Town but a village has set an example for all of us. It is time for all of us to make a choice or else our children will not be left with a choice.

Ebd-Notes
[1] https://www.wwf.org.au/news/blogs/how-many-birds-die-from-plastic-pollution#gs.mz39gp
[2] https://www.bbc.com/news/av/science-environment-47666059/dead-whale-had-40kg-of-plastic-in-its-stomach
[3] https://www.nationalgeographic.com/environment/2019/04/dead-pregnant-whale-plastic-italy/
[4] https://www.thehindu.com/sci-tech/science/microplastic-contamination-found-in-groundwater/article26105346.ece
[5] https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/gurgaon/how-this-village-has-replenished-its-depleting-groundwater-level/articleshow/70032633.cms

Written By: Ali Naqvi